Anatomy of the Yips

Day 151 without playing golf

I didn’t see much of the Bay Hill Invitational last weekend. I was too busy watching March Madness with my cousins in Indiana.

But I did see Greg Owen gag on the 17th green. He missed that three-footer for par and then tried to slam dunk the two-foot come backer.

Shocking.

I always hate to see it, even if I’m rooting against the person who does it. It makes me feel uneasy.

Although I don’t play much golf any more, I can relate to standing over those short ones when you have a brain cramp, sweaty palms, dry throat, etc., etc. We’ve all been there, haven’t we?

Play golf a bit and you soon realize you have to learn how to pull the trigger even when your insides are churning.

On the greens, I always wonder if it’s better to finish out before you think too much about those short putts, or to slow down, mark and go through a routine. I still don’t know the answer.

The Armchair Golfer

Photo of author
Neil Sagebiel

3 thoughts on “Anatomy of the Yips”

  1. I have a specific routine for the less than 3.5ish footers. It’s basically read the line, step up and putt. If I feel uneasy, I just step back and do it again.

    I practice these in this way as well. You can practice 100 of these in a very short period of time.

    Now if I can just get my first putt to that range…

    -Greg

    Reply

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